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Carlo Ancelotti
Carlo Michelangelo Ancelotti (born 10 June 1959) is a former Italian footballer who managed Chelsea F.C. from 2009 to 2011. Chelsea career On 1 June 2009, Chelsea confirmed that Ancelotti had become the new manager of the club, signing a three year deal. That first campaign began with a penalty shootout victory over Manchester United in the Community Shield, the first time we had been successful on penalties since 1998, and that fortune transferred to the league where we started the campaign with six straight victories before defeat at Wigan Athletic. Another wobble away at Aston Villa was followed by a run of excellent form that saw us win eight in nine in all competitions, including at home to United, and a 3-0 dismantling of Arsenal at The Emirates. Five straight wins in January saw Chelsea head into the run-in in pole position for both league and Cup success, though a tricky February saw them beaten at Everton and Manchester City in the league and lose 2-1 in the San Siro to Ancelotti's old adversaries Inter. We were unable to turn that tie around and bowed out at the last 16 stage for only the second time since returning to Europe's elite club competition, and for the first time since 2006. League form picked up through March, however, winning a combined 12-1 against Portsmouth and Aston Villa at the end of the month as the side played some of the best ever football seen in SW6, before a vital 2-1 win at Old Trafford, goals courtesy of Joe Cole and Didier Drogba put us back in command of the title race. There was no looking back, and although beaten at White Hart Lane, Chelsea put seven past Stoke City, two past Liverpool at Anfield and then smashed eight past Wigan to reclaim the Barclays Premier League in emphatic fashion. Having beaten Villa in the FA Cup semi-final, the Blues were back at Wembley to meet relegated Portsmouth in the Final, and although we dominated the south-coasters from start to finish, it took a second-half Didier Drogba free-kick, his 37th of the season, to earn a deserved victory and a place in the record books for Ancelotti. Over the course of the season his attacking emphasis had brought 103 league goals, another record, and 142 in all competitions, some 21 more than Chelsea's previous best in the mid-1960s. The 2010-11 season began in a similar vein with successive 6-0 victories against West Bromwich Albion and Wigan, and it seemed as though there would be no stopping the Blues. However, the Blues were defeated at Manchester City, while they also lost at Anfield, before a run of just three wins from 13 games in all competitions, a run that included six defeats, saw Chelsea drop out of the top four in early January. The Blues recovered to win four of the next five, while recruiting the talents of Fernando Torres and David Luiz to help engineer a push back into contention, and although the Blues were eliminated early from the FA Cup, they disposed of FC Copenhagen to reach the Champions League's last eight. Ancelotti turned his focus to achieving a top-four finish and progressing as far as possible in Europe, though in the end the two aims were almost swapped. Other clubs were dropping points now, and it was Chelsea's turn to surge upwards, the gap from the leaders reduced from 15 points to three. The season's close would hinge on three fixtures against United, but Sir Alex Ferguson's men would emerge triumphant each time, first beating us on home soil in April in the Champions League and then at theirs, before a 2-1 defeat in early May ensured the league would be heading to Old Trafford. Ancelotti's last game was at Goodison Park, where we lost 1-0 to Everton, a side he never managed to beat. Ancelotti left Chelsea having taken charge of 109 games, winning 67, drawing 20 and losing 22. Stats Category:Managers